Compressing-dies.



PATENTED MAR. 15, 1904.

T; A. EDISON. UOMPRESSINGDIES.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 28, 1902.

K0 MODEL.

w m m m Attorneys Ihurnp STATES Patented. March 15,1994.

PAIENT Orricn.

THOMAS A. EDISON, OF LLEINELLYN PARK, NEI/V JERSEY.

COMPRESSlNG-DIES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 754,755, dated March15,, 1904.

Application filed November 28, 1902. Serial No. 133,117. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS A. EDISON, a citizen of the United States,residing at Llewellyn Park, Orange, in the county of Essex and State ofNew Jersey, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement inCompressing-Dies, of which the following is a description.

My invention relates to improvements in dies for simultaneouslycompressing a plurality of objects, and the invention has beenparticular] y designed for use in the manufacture of electrode-platesfor my improved storage battery wherein a series of pockets orreceptacles are simultaneously subjected to a compressing effect for thepurpose of concaving, corrugating, or crimping the pockets orreceptacles in position within the openings of a supporting plate orgrid. The applicability of my invention in other arts will beunderstood, and its importance resides principally in the fact that byits use the several articles which may be operated on will be subjectedto the same pressure, regardless of the fact that the articles mayconsiderably vary in thickness. The importance of this capacity of theapparatus in the manufacture of storage-battery electrodes resides inthe fact that it is extremely difficult to always introduce the sameamount of active materials in a large number of pockets or receptacles,and until the present invention was devised difficulty was experiencedin subjecting them to pressure, inasmuch as the pockets or receptaclescontaining more active materials than the others would be subjected totoo much pressure, while the other pockets were not subjected to enoughpressure. By reason of the present improvements all the pockets orreceptacles or other articles which that a series of articles may besubjected to an identical compressing efl'ect irrespective of the factthat the articles may vary in thickness.

To this end the invention consists generally in a set of dies, one foreach article and movable independently of each other and so acted onthat while independent movement of the diesis permitted all of thedieswill be subjected to the same compressing effect at all times. Thesedies may cooperate with a corresponding series of independently-movabledies; but preferably they cooperate with a series of fixed dies carriedby a solid bed or foundation.

In order that the invention may be better understood, attention isdirected to the accompanyingdrawings, forming a part of thisspecification, and in which- Figure 1 is a plan View showing the plungerof a hydraulic press carrying a set of my improved dies for use .in themanufacture of storage-battery plates; Fig. 2, a vertical-sectionalview. of the same, showing also the fixed dies carried on the bed of thepress; and Fig. 8,a cross-sectional View through the fixed dies.

In all of the above views corresponding parts are'represented by thesame'numerals of reference.

1 represents the plunger of a suitable hy draulic or other powerfulpress, having a reduced portion 2, enteringa heavy frame 3, secured tothe plunger by bolts 4- Mounted within the frame 3 are blocks 5, each ofwhich carries a die 6 on its bottom, said die being held in place bypins 7. Obviously the shape of the dies is dependent upon the particularwork which they are designedto perform. In the drawings I illustrate thedies as being provided with conveXed surfaces, so as to concave thepockets or receptacles and at the same time to crimp the latter in placearound the edges of the openings in the plate or grid. The severalblocks 5 are capable of independent movement with respect to each otherand with respect to the frame 3 and are strung on rods 8, which passthrough slots in said blocks. Interposed between the several blocks 5and the plunger of the press and confined by the frame 3 is a layer 9 ofrubber or other yielding non-compressible material. The other set ofdies, 10, are of the desired form and are preferably carried on the bedor foundation 11 of the press. In operation the desired articles areintroduced between the two sets of dies 6 and 10 and pressure is appliedto forcethe plunger 1 downward, so as to compress the articles betweenthe dies. It will be understood that the pressure applied to the dies 6is imposed entirely through the layer of noncompressible material,whereby the dies will be all subjected to the same pressure, while atthe same time they will be capable of independent adjustment toaccommodate themselves to variations in the thickness of the articles.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new therein, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is as follows:

1. The combination with a support, of a series of dies carried therebyand movable independently of the support and of each other, means forimposing pressure simultaneously on the dies, and a confined mass ofnon-compressible yielding material between the' dies and the means whichimpose pressure thereon, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination with a support, of a series of dies carried therebyand movable independently of the support and of each other, means forimposing pressure simultaneously on the dies, and a confined mass ofrubber between the dies and the means which impose pressure thereon,substantially as set forth.

3. The combination with a plunger to which pressure is applied, a seriesof independent dies operated simultaneously by the plunger, and aconfined mass of yielding non-compressible material between the plungerand said dies,

substantially as set forth.

4. The combination with a plunger to which pressure is applied, a seriesof independent dies operated simultaneously by the plunger, and aconfined mass of rubber between the plunger and said dies, substantiallyas set forth.

5. The combination with a plungerto which pressure is applied, a framecarried by the same, a series of simultaneously-operated dies mounted inthe frame and capable of independent movement with respect to each otherand with respect to the frame, and a confined mass of yieldingnon-compressible material between said dies and plunger, substantiallyas set forth.

6. The combination with a plunger to which pressure is applied, a framecarried by the same, a series of simultaneously-operated dies mounted inthe frame and capable of independent movement with respect to each otherand with respect to the frame, and a confined mass of rubber betweensaid dies and plunger, substantially as set forth.

7. The combination with a plunger, a frame carried by the same, a seriesof blocks mounted in said frame and capable of movement independently ofeach other and of the frame, a confined mass of yieldingnon-compressible material between said blocks and plunger, and a dieremovably carried by each of said blocks, substantially as set forth.

8. The combination with a plunger, a frame carried by the same, a seriesof blocks mounted in said frame and capable of movement independently ofeach other and of the frame, a confined mass of rubber between saidblocks and plunger, and a die removably carried by each of said blocks,substantially as set forth.

This specification signed and witnessed this 13th day ofNovember, 1902.

THOS. A. EDISON.

Witnesses:

FRANK L. DYER, J. F. RANDOLPH.

